What happened to my peas and beans? - Knowledgebase Question

I planted a garden in a large raised bed. Everything was growing just fine. My peas and beans were taking off and i was enjoying them, but then all of a sudden they wilted brown and died. What happened? Did I not water them enough?

It wasn?t clear to me when you said you were ?enjoying them? if that meant you were starting to harvest, or if you were enjoying the fact that plants were growing, which is also great fun! So I?ll provide a few possibilities. It could be that they didn?t receive sufficient water. The goal is to water deeply and infrequently as possible. Water should soak through the root zone, usually about 12 inches deep, with each watering. This leaches salts in the water and soil beyond the roots. Otherwise, salt build-up can cause plants to yellow, brown and die. Conserve soil moisture with a generous layer of organic mulch. If the watering seems okay to you and the plants died suddenly, it?s likely a root problem or a disease. If you were harvesting peas, the plants may have developed a disease such as fusarium wilt. Pea plants infected with fusarium grow vigorously until flowering, then suddenly die. Fusarium wilt fungi are more active as the soil warms. Peas are considered cool-season veggies. They don?t perform well when temperatures heat up, so they are typically planted in early spring or early fall in regions where summers are hot. If you had a hot spell, they may have decided life was over. Most beans grow best at air temperatures of 70F - 80F and soil temperatures of at least 60F. If the soil is soggy, or cold, the plants will not thrive. Both require full sunshine all day. If you haven?t already done so, I?d suggest pulling up the plants and disposing of them in the trash, not the compost pile. If they have a disease, you don?t want to spread it around. Prepare your garden soil well by adding lots of organic matter to help retain moisture and release nutrients to the roots of your crops. I hope this info helps.